IIM Nagpur, Goa PWD sign pact on traffic management
IIM Nagpur's CLIP centre will build traffic simulation and pedestrian evacuation models for key Goa road networks under a new 12 month agreement.
The Indian Institute of Management Nagpur has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Goa government's Public Works Department on traffic and pedestrian safety. The institute's Centre for Logistics, Infrastructure and Project Management, or CLIP, will prepare traffic simulation models and pedestrian evacuation models for some key road networks in Goa under the agreement.
The MOU was signed on September 9 in Panaji, the same day the six lane elevated corridor at Porvorim was inaugurated. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari was the chief guest at the event and inaugurated the new corridor. The MOU was signed in the presence of Goa Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant.
The signatories included Sandeep K. Prabhu Chodankar, Principal Chief Engineer of Goa PWD and ex officio Additional Secretary in the Goa government, and Dr. Bhimaraya Metri, Director of IIM Nagpur. The two exchanged documents.
The project runs for 12 months. Under it, IIM Nagpur's CLIP centre will prepare traffic simulation models and pedestrian evacuation models for the road networks at KTC Circle, Divja Circle and Merces Circle in Panaji, as well as Margao and Sankhwada.
Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant said the MOU would enable a scientific and comprehensive study of Goa's key traffic junctions. "IIM Nagpur's recommendations will help the state government find practical, long-lasting measures to reduce congestion, improve traffic flow and make travel safer and easier for both local residents and visitors," he said.
IIM Nagpur Director Dr. Bhimaraya Metri said, "Management institutes should not be confined to classrooms but should also contribute to solving problems that affect ordinary citizens. This partnership with Goa is a major milestone for IIM Nagpur. We aim to combine field data, simulation technology and management thinking to give Goa practical solutions that make roads safer, cut travel time and keep infrastructure effective for decades to come."
With this agreement, Goa has become the third state to begin working with IIM Nagpur's CLIP centre on traffic, pedestrian and crowd management. CLIP had earlier signed an MOU with the Maharashtra government on crowd management planning for the 2027 Kumbh Mela at Nashik and Trimbakeshwar, and with the Madhya Pradesh government for the 2028 Ujjain Kumbh Mela. The Goa project extends this work beyond managing large public events to everyday urban traffic and long-term transport planning.
Under the project, the IIM Nagpur team will first collect and analyse data on road networks, traffic volume, travel time, congestion, public transport and parking at the identified locations. Traffic simulation models will then be prepared for KTC Circle, Divja Circle and Merces Circle in Panaji, as well as Margao and Sankhwada. Evacuation models will also be built to improve pedestrian movement and enhance the safety of vulnerable road users. The team will estimate traffic demand for the next 10, 20 and 30 years so that potential congestion points can be identified in advance. It will also give recommendations on signal timing, road and intersection design, parking management and integration of public transport.
